The Eternal Jewel
by Annoy-nymous
Summary: Some people believe in love at first sight. Splendid would know, because he was one of those people. However, what he had never believed in was that it was possible to fall in love with somebody he was not suppose to. Splendid x Fliqpy/Flippy
1. Chapter 1: A Killer in the Town

**Author's Note: Hey, so this is my first time writing a Happy Tree Friends' fanfiction... Or a romance fanfiction for that matter. I think that there's WAY too little Splendid x Fliqpy/Flippy fanfics around and who doesn't like yaoi, ammright guys? Right? ;) So I thought I might as well do a little bit of contribution. However, bear in mind that this isn't just pure romance. There is a plot to go along with it as well! I try to stay as loyal to the series as possible (Eg. Lots of juicy gore, fast-paced, goofy and ironic situations, and yes, they're not in their human forms like most fanfics are obsessed with depicting around here), so if that's your thing, please do continue! I also try to nail their personalities down as best as I can, and at the same time, I'll attempt to include lots of fluff so prepare for some cuteness! :D And just a note for you #h8rs, this isn't furry. If a character like that skunk Pepé Le Pew from Looney Tunes can chase after (and sexually harrass) poor Penelope Pussycat, I'm sure as hell a gore-filled cartoon on the internet with a little bit of romance won't hurt. This is just T-rated anyway, so the only warnings here are for gore. Alright, buckle up for an adventure, and happy reading! I really, really hope you enjoy. :)**

It had been a rather dull day, especially for the not so tranquil town of Happy Tree. The citizens were pacing around in their relaxed manner, going about their usual business, be it carting around their children in shopping carts to the mall, or visiting their friends' home to hang out. Quiet. Boring. No screams of pain. Just the way a certain flying squirrel likes it. His round, sky blue ears twitched up, and, to his pleasure, captured only the sounds of mundane footsteps and laughter with his gift of hearing. Clapping his hands together in glee, the town's hero going by the alias Splendid was granted permission to turn back to his task at hand as his mouth morphed into a pleasant smile.

_Bzzzzz_

The vacuum cleaner stirred up and filled the little house with its obnoxious whirring noises. Splendid, whom was floating in the air, had said vacuum in his hand, and he was going about the business rather casually for someone who was a feet off the ground. He aimed for the dust particles with accurate precision, humming a tune as he watched those fine powder get sucked into the tool, ridding his home from dirt. He rarely had the time to clean his Acorn Fortress, what with all the troubles this town seemed to enjoy getting into, so it explained his extremely good mood this lovely afternoon. Twelve hours without an accident. Nobody has needed him for twelve hours straight! Is this even real? This has _got_ to be a new record!

However, he knew he had spoken too soon, for when the squirrel had just began to move on to the next room, the buzzing sounds of the vacuum cleaner were dimmed down by a shrill shriek from the distance. Splendid's smile dropped in less than a split second.

_"AGHHH, HELP! HELP! SOMEBODY, ACKKKK-"_ The scream was cut off by the sound of wet, squelching noises, organs, the experienced hero presumed, splattering across concrete. Ah, of course. Perfect. Just when he thought he could relax. The hero sighed and, with a tired expression, abandoned his current job and shot off straight into the sky, leaving the vacuum cleaner to drop to the floor with a thud. Unwittingly, his rush had accidentally created a hole in his ceiling, right beside the first one from last time.

Like lightning, he crackled straight to the ground where he had estimated for the situation to be present at hand, posing in an epic akimbo pose with his muscled chest pumping out for effect at the same time (He even hummed his trademark heroic tune). He took a quick survey of his surrounding. The sounds of shouting and crying poisoned the air with its horror-filled melody. There were people running away in many different directions with terror, not even minding the fact that they were on the road with vehicles driving left and right 24/7. _Do none of these people know their traffic rules?_ The hero crossed his arms and looked at the chaos obliviously with a disapproving raise of his brows. His fur, which was fuzzed slightly from the inhumane speed in which he had arrived, was naturally smoothened out by a sudden gust of wind. The breeze headed east as it carried along a rather sharp, foreign fragrance with it, startling the squirrel slightly.

_Wait..._

His heart tightened as he took that scent in. It was an ashy smell, laced with a pleasant, sweet tint of mint. It smelled especially earthy, a flavour the squirrel found himself comforted slightly by, which was strange, given the situation.

But then a different, more recognizable tangy smell of metal soon began to fill his nostrils. The squirrel immediately forgot about the previous queerness of the unknown scent and, raising his defenses up once more, Splendid immediately whipped around to his right from where that smell had came from.

The first thing that caught his attention were the shocking flashes of scarlet splashed across the solid pavement distances away like paint. Bits and pieces of intestines, brains, livers, anything you could ever dream of that resides in a body were littered on the concrete tiles like trash. As he scanned further, his eyes flew upon focus onto the remains of an unrecognizable piece of head chucked onto the mouth of a public fire hydrant. There was a large hole on the top of the head, where water from the hydrant, pale red from the taint of blood, poured out gashingly like a twisted waterfall. Not far from there, another body was spread out, impaled on a bleeding pole, followed by another, which was charred black. And as he scanned further, there was another, which was twitching and convulsing with large pieces of glass cutting obscenely into his skin and eyeballs, right beside another, laying on top of a-

Splendid stopped looking. His head spun as his face went green at the bloody massacre. This was clearly not an accident. Foul play, whilst not common, happened from time to time and the hero had always been intervening in street fights and brawls and attempted murders. However, he had never encountered one this proportionately massive. This was not foul play anymore. This was a _rampage_.

The superhero's eyes narrowed down to slits as a spark of determination ignited inside of him. In an instant, he began to carry out his investigation, deciding to take a look at the charred, blackened body first.

He levitated over many fiery debris and reached the furthest body at the end of the street. He hoped that the body was the last victim of the bunch, because it would certainly point out the latest position of the culprit. As Splendid examined its familiar gapped teeth, the sudden epiphany that the body once belonged to a friend, Toothy, struck him with full force. He felt like vomiting at the disgusting overcooked meat smell wafting from the once-purple beaver. However, the flying squirrel held his bile up and tried his best to maintain his air of professionalism by continuing to look around the body for any clues. That was when a line of ashes nearby clutched at the rodent's attention. _Bingo_! Perking up at the new discovery, Splendid's eyes traced the trail of dust, which eventually led to a book shop across the street that was ablazed with recently fresh fire. The heat crackled with bits of fiery sparks flying dangerously all over the place. Toothy must have ran out from there whilst he was caught on fire. His heart tightened at the thought.

_'I swear, when I get my hands on whoever's responsible for this, I will deliver them a taste of my fist!' _He thought ferociously, angered at the injustice the victims had to suffer through due to the actions of this mysterious madman. This town had never been a particularly violent one. All deaths that happened were often caused by one's mistakes, and never mischief. To top it all off, everyone in this town are good people. Well, perhaps not those pesky raccoon thieves, but those two had never went as far as to commit murder! Just who could have done this?

An unusual movement of orange inside of the building caught the superhero's attention, snapping him out of his revorie.

_'Hold on, is that a...'_

With his super sight, he was able to capture the body of a barely moving civillian caught underneath a fallen shelf inside the book shop. That must be Disco Bear, he presumed, and Splendid was able to detect his slight, aching movements and hear his pained groan. He was barely conscious, and if he does not get out of there soon, the fumes will eventually choke him.

On instinct, the hero charged towards him, busting through the windows with his fists. The impact caused the glass pane to shatter, which led to pieces of glass shards shooting towards an innocent passer-by. He screamed as it pierced his eyeballs through the lids, and as he ran away towards the road, a car drove over him, leaving behind a mess of tire tracks and bloodied fur.

Splendid appeared to be unaware of the demise of the poor unsuspecting civillian, instead, pushing through fallen debris towards Disco. The orange bear was almost fully awake now upon seeing the infamous superhero floating towards his direction. "H... H... Hel..." He coughed and wheezed weakly. At the meantime, Splendid rushed to his side, hauling the huge bookshelf off him. His lower abdomen was literally crushed to a purple pulp, causing the superhero to cringe at the sight. The lower half of his body was distorted in an eerie manner, with bones protruding from his knees and hips. There was blood constantly leaking into the carpet, and the bruises were so severe, they were indent, giving Disco Bear a disfigured look with odd pieces of bald lumps sticking out. The dancer's breathing was shallow.

"Don't worry citizen, I'll get you out of here soon. Just don't panic, alright?" He reassured him, trying to prop Disco in his arms in a comfortable position. However, that was when he made a choking sound. His face was unusually devoid of all colours, and shaking fingers rose up, pointing behind him.

Splendid paid no mind to him. Instead, his expression changed into an even more worried one. They need to get out of there soon, the bear appeared to be getting more hysterical by the minute. Just as he was about to take off, however, Disco Bear went full-out insane without warning. With an amazing amount of movement, he pushed at the squirrel and appeared to be screaming at the top of his lungs, but all that came out were wheezing noises, his lungs having been filled with soot. His crazed eyes were blown wide with flecks of red, indicating his stress. Taken aback, Splendid was having trouble handling the struggling bear.

"Stop it, stop... Moving!" His left eye instinctively flew shut as Disco Bear, with a surprising amount of vigor for someone who had been trapped in a huge blaze, clawed at his face, obstructing his view. He was unable to take off properly. "What are you doing?!" The bear with the afro pushed at his arms, mouthing airless words in a wild frenzy.

Fed-up, Splendid decided to just take off anyway, carelessly disregarding the fact that he may injure Disco with his lack of vision being unable to keep up with the falling debris.

But that was when it happened.

Splendid was unable to even comprehend the situation in time, as he felt a swift air dart past his face like electric. It took a moment to realize that the wet feeling in his hands were from Disco's blood. His mouth flew open in shock. His head buzzed at the scene he saw before him.

In his arms, the orange bear's empty, cockeyed stare seemed to glared back at his face, accusing him of failure, which was silly, as it was devoid of emotions at the time. His tongue lolled out, brain-dead, drooling, collecting the waterfall-like pool of blood that was beginning to overflow in his mouth as the source of his murder, right between those eyes, embedded deep into his brain. The glint of a bowie knife that was stucked in Disco's forehead barbarically like a pig mocked the protector of the town with its polished curse. The corpse lurched forward and hung limp in Splendid's arms, marring the patagium with crimson. Splendid let out a yelp of astonishment and immediately dropped him.

A chuckle emitted from behind him.

Splendid spun around so quickly he sent some ruined books nearby flying off a burnt desk from the wind he caused. However, before he could even get an eye of the criminal, he was met with a face full of table. The wooden table cracked in half with a groan as it was thrown at the squirrel's almost titanium-like face. Though he appeared unfazed, his eyes still flew shut anyway. The first thing that came to his mind was the image of his arch-nemesis, Splendont. _What was he doing here?_

But no. This was not the red squirrel, was it? The Spledont he knew would not care to hold back. The force from the table was weaker than usual. It was stronger than an average Tree Friend's, that was for sure, but given the choice, the clone would have been able to tear a damn hole through the wall with it. There is no way this was Splendont.

And it was confirmed when he opened his eyes, because there, standing before him, was the most_delectable_ creature he had ever seen.

The first feature Splendid noticed about him was that his whole face was covered in a gas mask, much to his disappointment. It was no doubt a good idea to have those on in a fiery building of inferno, however. This left the hero to observe the rest of him, and if Splendid was honest with himself, he liked what he saw. Those slight but supple curves of his lithe body was clothed in an army garb, teasing the blue squirrel with their subtle modesty. What available fur he saw was lime-green and looked so silky smooth, Splendid had the urge to run his hands through them to feel it himself. The beret sitting on the top of his head was nestled perfectly in between a pair of bear ears, matching the uniform. The dog tags hanging from his neck jingled in a soft melody, whispering to Splendid the secrets of war, and he understood then that the reason he had never seen him around before was because he had been deployed for military service the whole while the hero had moved to this town. But perhaps the most prominent, outstanding feature of the young bear, a feature that knocked the hero off his feet and left his heart pounding up his throat, his head reeling like a typhoon, and his eyes dilating as large as the moon, was that absolutely, positively amazing scent that seemed to be able to overpower the odour of the hazardous smoke in the ruined shop.

_... That smell! Wasn't this the scent he captured when he first arrived just now? The fragrance that had unfortunately been blown away and replaced with the pungent smell of blood instead?_

His scent was sweet, and reminded him of grass in the winter. It was unnaturally ashy, and only now did Splendid realize why, for they were souvenirs of the war, and the smell only now increased in intensity due to the blaze. _Not bad..._ Splendid took a deep whiff in and sighed. His chest was running in circles and those butterflies were tickling his stomach, refusing to leave him alone.

Everything moved in a dazed slow motion. The cold grotesque mask glinted a deep sunset orange as a sudden explosion from the background lit up, casting the bear's green fur and apparel into a beautiful yellow bloom. His fur bristled forward dramatically due to the heatwaves from the explosion, all the while miraculously remaining calm and never faltering from all that has transpired. At the same time, the dangerous ambers loomed over the bear like a wild beast, and many would have thought that it was the flames that have overpowered him and he was about to be encased in it at any moment because they were unpredictable and menacing that way. But _no_. In this case, it was the bear that tamed the flames. He showed no fear as they crackled only when he wants them to, and for now, they roared obediently behind him, only because he told them to, because he just had that amount of power over the fires, and invisibly, over the superhero as well. That, coupled with those amazing aspects about him as he stood in the middle of the room confidently face-to-face with Splendid, left the hero gaping, and he found that he was unable to take his eyes off the majestic sight.

So engrossed in the scent and sight was he, he had not even notice the other making a move. The tables have turned, the bear had removed his leash from the flames, and attempted to draw him in it instead. Whipping out a dark green egg-shaped object, he removed the pin and threw it towards Splendid's direction. It took a while to process what it was, but by then, the grenade exploded and the shop was engulfed in even more flames. The cadaver of Disco blew up with a mess of blood and guts flying all over the place. For a flitting moment, the wall behind Splendid busted open to reveal a white bright crack to the outside world, only for more debris to collapse and shield it from him once more, courtesy of the explosion that damaged the support of the roof. Splendid was, of course, unaffected, though he felt his skin burn from the heat. Even as his blue fur was singed slightly, he stood tall without a single flinch. The whole room began to settle down.

"Feisty!" He remarked bemusedly, his obsidian eyes glinting from behind the red cloth.

It was hard to see the bear's expression (Gas mask and all), but Splendid could tell he was rather surprised from the way he tensed up slightly. However, the movement was only brief, and he immediately morphed into a more relaxed stance. Loud bursts of deep laughter surrounded the room.

"_Splendid_, is it? Interesting." His voice was muffled from behind the gas mask, but he could tell that it was rather deep, grating, and sounded more bestial than anything. From someone of such an elegant stature, Splendid never expected him to sound like this. He, too, regarded the slighter male with a fascinated look.

"That's me," He said proudly, his chest pumped out to show off his muscular abdomen, even though there was nobody else to see it but the young bear. His voice was suddenly a timbre deeper as Splendid's tone changed into an even more flirty one. "And _you_ are?"

Whether he realized it or not, the stranger seemingly remained oblivious to the switch, as he simply grunted in response, sounding delighted. "That is for you to find out, _hero_." He said.

"Aww, that's not fair." Splendid pouted. "Not even a clue?"

The soldier did not answer him. The heavy breathing of the green bear, intensified by the gas mask, was the only sound filling the awkward silence of the atmosphere. As if the room wasn't bright enough, he paused for a moment, before the stranger seemed to glow with an unexpected rush of radiant energy.

"Hey, how about we play a game instead?" He spoke up randomly. The voice was now sounding even more bloodthirsty than ever, as they exhibited crystal clear excitement. Splendid cocked his head curiously. That was rather sudden, not that he minded. He'd probably fly to a different galaxy and back again just to stand close to this beautiful stranger.

"A game?"

The bear nodded as he continued. "You beat me, I'll tell you who I am, and then you can do whatever you want with me."

Splendid perked up at the offer. This was too good to be true. On impulse, he was just about to agree, but if there was anything he had learnt from tempting deals, it was that they always have a catch. He will not readily accept it just yet. Splendid may look distracted, but he was not fully blinded by the enchanting bear. After all, red remnants of what the deceitful war veteran was capable of was splattered all over the place as if it was blended by the room at the moment. Not to mention that the guy did try to blast a hole through him the instant they came face-to-face.

"And if I lose...?" He inquired with suspicion.

"I get to kill you." The bear cut in with a hungry response.

Predictable. Splendid let out a cocky huff. He was unable to help his next words. "Yeah, good luck with that."

"Oh no, I don't get to kill you just yet." He said. "You will have to tell me your weakness. And then I will hunt you down. Fun, don't you think?" He snickered. "Everybody has a weakness. Even you, hero. Come on, what do you say? Don't be a spoilsport now. Let's play,"

Splendid bit his lip. This was definitely not a good idea. Playing a game with a mass murderer that had just slaughtered a handful of people in the most cruel way possible was suicide, or worse yet, innocents may get caught in it and die. Maybe he should just turn him in to the police instead. Nobody will be harmed, and the world will get back to normal with a dangerous convict kept at bay. But the superhero found himself unable to do such a thing. Even if the soldier was unaware of it, he really do have a tight leash on the helpless squirrel. Besides, if he were to just hand him over to the cops right now, he may never be able to get his name. And the thought of the green bear being upset with the hero made him strangely dejected.

_What was he doing to him...? He barely even knew this guy, and he already had the role-model of the town wrapped around his finger like no other. He had never been this weak and pathetic before. This guy must really be something._

As if sensing his dilemma, the military bear added, "Don't be stupid. No civilian will get involved in this. Scout's honor," The last words were slurred mockingly. "This is _our_ own little personal game, after all."

Splendid's heart thumped eagerly at the thought. If this meant getting to spend more time with the gorgeous young bear, count him in! Besides, he was THE Splendid after all. The infamous flying squirrel with super powers going one-up against an ordinary army sergeant. The odds of beating him was immense, so what could go wrong?

Putting on a thoughtful look, he finally caved in. "Alright, fine, I'll do it. What are the rules?"

The sergeant appeared to light up. "Think of this as a treasure hunt." He began animatedly, and Splendid could hear the wild smirk behind his words as he talked. "I'm going to make this more interesting. What we will be looking for is an ancient artefact. Said to be sealed underneath the depths of a temple, we don't know where it is, or what it does. It ain't anyone else's property, not anymore, so it should be good enough for your cute little _heroic_ code. It's called the Eternal Jewel. Nobody has set their eyes on it for years, which is why this will be fun for the both of us, don't you agree?"

The fire in the building growled ferociously, followed by a loud noise close by which bounced around the small confines of the room. The place was not going to hold much longer, for the amount of debris falling has increased tremendously. The bear grew more impatient.

"Whoever finds it first beats the other. Well? Do we have a deal?"

The blue squirrel looked unsure. "Nobody even knows where it is... How the hell am I going to find it?"

"We're on the same page!" He snapped. "Use your brain. Get as much source as you can. You wanted to play, right? Play with me then, hero. Win and you can do whatever you want with me. I'll cooperate. Hand me to the police, bring me into rehabilitation, force me into a potato sack, etcetera etcetera!"

"Maaan, I could be handing you to the police right now, you know."

"And yet you haven't. Why is that?"

His tone took on an imploringly curious one as his head cocked slightly to the side in question. Splendid opened his mouth, but just as quickly shut it again. A strange and light crumble sounded from above, freezing the two in place. Just then, a particularly large piece of concrete began to break off from the roof and fell. It dropped soundly right in front of the soldier, narrowly missing him by the width of a hair. Splendid felt his pulse race.

The damage set about a chain of reaction, as the ceiling began to crack. The black snake-like mark crawled with a dreadful crunching noise, and it expanded and expanded until, finally, the whole building seemed to collapse in slow-motion. Splendid's eyes widened. He did not even think, did not even feel himself as he advanced forward on pure, driven instinct. His body, programmed to protect, switched on to auto-pilot mode, as he dove forward and tackled the unwary green bear to the ground. The superhero did not even hear the astonished yelp from below him. The noise of blood pounding in his head was all that he could hear, replacing the chaotic sounds of destruction. Concrete after concrete fell on the two, as the whole building began to collapse and engulf the pair in darkness. Soot and dust showered the place and there was a moment of silence. Splendid did not know for how long time has transgressed, all he saw was the unforgiving darkness, and all he felt was the warmth beneath him which he clung onto for dear life. When he felt that the time was right, and the white dust has settled along with the demolition of the building, he began to support himself up with his hands. Sizable pieces of concrete slid off his back, along with dozens of white crumbs, as he was now in a propped-up position with white powder-like particles caking the back of his now-almost-blue fur. His eyes cracked open and thought, for a split second, that he was seeing stars due to the monumental amount of force applied to his head from the collapse. But then he seemed to remember that he was invulnerable and realized that those weren't exactly stars he saw, but the dazzling glitter in the trapped soldier's wide, dark eye peering back at him from below.

His heart thumped. A few feet from the two laid the military bear's gas mask, which must have fallen off when he was pushed to the floor. There was something incredibly off about him, as he had an eye closed in a vulnerable manner that was very unlike the confident self he made himself to be just mere minutes ago. His round ears were pulled back slightly, like a threatened or scared animal, and Splendid knew then that there was something wrong with him the moment he opened his mouth.

"W...Wha..?"

His voice was slightly higher than the low guttural sound he had displayed just then, and even more soft, like one of a very friendly person which is the OPPOSITE of the bear he knew from the start. It was quite smooth and sounded so sweet and confused, Splendid had a strange urge to squeeze him.

His face was so round, nose so tiny and his lips so inviting, it was a sin to have kept them masked from the start. The squirrel could not help but drown in the other's eyes, for they were deep and eternal, and very much black, he thought that the bear must have kept a whole galaxy inside there.

Splendid felt a pull tugging at him as the butterflies in his stomach returned full force, fluttering madly this time. The fresh smell of the stranger was doubled with their proximity, it was all the super-squirrel could breathe as the aroma invaded his senses and wrecked his poor, abused head. But that was not enough. He needed more. Needed to taste it. The drive lulled him forward, and Splendid did not know why he did it, but he leaned in forward, inching closer and closer towards the bear, before finally, he kissed him.


	2. Chapter 2: The Undiscovered

**Author's notes: Welcome back to my LAIR! Sorry it took so long. I had lots of tests and had been very busy, what with this year being the graduating year for me in Secondary school, so you mustn't expect consistency with my stories, sorry. But I had fun writing it, that's for sure! And please forgive me for any mistakes. I really rushed through it to get it posted as soon as I can.**

**Side note, I find the fact that Splendid has a fear of heights stupid. I mean, in one episode he flew to goddamn space ffs, so I definitely won't be including his acrophobia into this story. This 'fact' was only written once in HTF's "Collect Them All" cards anyway, so let's all dismiss that for now, yes? Anyway, thanks for reading this and once again, enjoy~**

**Disclaimer: Characters belong to MondoMedia's Happy Tree Friends', not mine, yadda yadda yadda. (Forgot to do this in Chapter 1, sorry.)**

The squirrel was lost. Everything else in the world has disappeared for the moment. Nothing else was able to be comprehended, not even the dank, deserted streets the two were held in an embrace in, not even the dingy atmosphere it displayed. His eyes was closed and focused on dancing his lips across the other's mouth. The sensation showering along them was satisfying to say the least, with its petal-like texture and flavoursome taste. He was exactly as Splendid thought it would be. He has the coolness of ice, and the hotness of fire all at once. He lost himself in the bliss, inwardly deeming that superheroes do deserve a little prize from time to time, after all.

The hero, remaining oblivious, only felt the external pounding on his chest a while later. It snapped him out of his dream-like state, causing him to stop moving immediately. Splendid breathed out irritably through his nose. Without unlatching himself from the bear's lips, his eyes cracked open at the odd interruption, only to be greeted face-to-face with the bear who was now a strange shade of blue. The male was beating at his chest, trying to push him off.

Oops. Looks like he had forgotten the limitations of a mortal's lung capacity... Again.

He released him from his hold with a sheepish grin. The gorgeous bear with his galactic eyes scrambled backwards immediately until his back hit the remains of the bookshop, coughing and panting. His cheeks had returned to its normal shade of lime, but this time, there was a scarlet tint dusted across his features. His chest expanded and contracted, and Splendid shot him an embarrassed look.

"Look, sorry about that. I couldn't hold myself back," He said in a low, intimate voice that gets all the local females swooning and throwing themselves at his feet. "But you didn't seem like you were complaining." The arrogant squirrel ended his words with a half-cocked smirk for charm, expecting the bear to drop to his feet and confess words of deep and sincere love for the hero. It was perfectly normal for someone like him, especially since it was mating season around this time of the month.

Splendid continued grinning at him expectantly, eyes sparkling. The other stared back with the opposite expression.

"Wh... What is..." He squeaked meekly.

_Just watch. He'll be in my arms in no time._

_"...Y-You..."_

_Aaaany moment now..._

"...What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

And with that, Splendid's whole world crashed.

It was as if his very soul was pierced by the confused, paranoid look the bear sent his way.

And to make things worse, the other male just had to rub salt to the wound by reaching up and rubbing away at his lips frantically with his sleeves.

The superhero's heart sank, along with the weight of his first rejection dropped onto him like a planet-sized meteorite doused with one million tonnes of kryptonut. He had no idea a creature of such delicate beauty was capable of being that **harsh**.

"I- Uh- Um-"

For the first time, the overly confident vigilante was at a lost for words, and he thought, _really_ thought about someone else's words this time. Just what _was_ he doing?

Whilst Splendid was left alone to sputter gibberish, the bear lowered his arm and narrowed his eyes in military observance of the stranger. He knew he had seen him before somewhere, but no matter how hard he tried, he just could not place a paw on where he had caught sight of the overly familiar figure from.

As he internally began to delve deeper on the subject, however, his mind helpfully flashed a headline from last month's newspaper. Months of glimpses of gossip, whispers and posters, movies, comics, talk shows and interviews revolved around his head in rapid bullet speed and it all became clear to him then.

As if he finally piece together a puzzle, the sergeant let out a gasp, forgetting about the previous violation of his lips instantaneously. "Wait a minute! You're _Splendid_, aren't you? That real life _superhero_?"

A worried expression overcame the blue squirrel's features, replacing his disheartened state.

"Oh gee. I didn't knock you down too hard, did I?" He joked as dark clouds of confusion began to overlap the flustering sparks of his predicament from earlier. It was as if the soldier had completely forgotten the events of their exchange earlier.

As though to confirm, the smaller male looked around uncertainly, eyes laced with doubt. An ashy, burning reek rose up along with the smoke from the ruins of the building. The whole area was empty, and the place stank of death with all the remains of rotting bodies scattered about. It was silent without a single civilian around, save for the crowing of pesky vultures having located a free buffet party.

"...What happened around here?" He frightened Splendid with the question.

Suddenly, the killer's eyes began to widen. He looked from Splendid, then to the chaos surrounding him, and then back to the super-squirrel again. Everything began to click into place. His mouth flew open. A look of comprehension, and eventually horror overcame the bear's features like a smooth spread of emotions.

"Oh crap..."

He scrambled up shakily.

"Not again...!" The stranger's face dropped into his palms, groaning. "No, no, no!" The bear's head shook from left to right in denial. His shoulders began to quake and he paced around in frustration to calm his whole body down, leaving Splendid to hover there and stare at him awkwardly.

He opened his mouth, then thought against it as he shut them again. Splendid's head was extremely blank at the moment as he tried to process what the hell was going on. What has gotten into him? Had he done something wrong to upset him again?

At that moment, however, the dim sounds of sirens blared from a distance. The two whipped up in the direction of the noise and saw at least _five_ little black and white dots along the road becoming increasingly larger. Police cars.

Splendid saw the criminal tense in the corner of his eyes, and he immediately understood that he needed to get them out of there now before they both land in trouble. In the eyes of assumable policemen, he had practically became an accomplice the moment he let this murderer walk away scot free. Being a masked vigilante was illegal enough already, and he didn't want to add any more reasons into the list of reasons the police wanted to arrest him. It was not exactly role model material for Happy Tree town, per say.

The sergeant cried out as he suddenly felt a pair of steel arms scoop him up as if he was air, and having him in a bridal position no less. His flank collided against a hard chest in the process, and without any warning whatsoever, he felt his feet leave the ground. In just half a second, the beat of wind flew past his face and the darting currents of air made his fur dance and jive violently. He looked down and screamed some more when he saw that the abandoned building they were in moments ago was now a mere speckle in the distance.

"I'm-I'm flying... I'm flying!" He squealed, his face morphing into one of horrification. He clutched at the furs on his face for any amount of leverage. The dazzling array of blue that sped past his vision awakened a terrible reminder. His breathing hitched as memories of flying F16s and shooting missiles at enemy fighter jets during the war surfaced in the back of his mind. The paranoia, the fear, the blood thirst. It was still there and they were all too real. An eye twitched.

Splendid felt a pressure squeeze around his neck and it took him a while to realize that it was caused by the other male's arms. A quick glimpse told him that the bear had his eyes clenched tightly shut. He was violently shaking and appearing to be trying his utmost to calm himself. His arms must have instinctively flown up to wrap themselves around the hero. Splendid felt both his heart and cheeks warm slightly at the sight, reveling in the little ball of warmness he had gathered in his arms. Taking pity on the poor bear, he slowed down his speed.

The winds granted mercy on his green fur as they were dropped to a serene combination of gravity and breeze once again. Feeling the calm, the veteran ceased his yells and cracked his eyes open slowly. What greeted him was a once-in-a-lifetime sight to behold, and he found himself letting out a breath of relief and eventually, splendor.

The soldier watched, star-struck, as the panoramic view of the Earth's canvas filled his vision with a rare sort of wonder. The blessings of the Sun far away was the main director of the whole scenery as the skies, along with their ivory rich clouds, were painted with the a spirit of candescence. For once, he allowed himself to be lost to the feeling of utter peace. The horrid recollections became paltry nightmares of the past, and he felt his breathing becoming steady as the evil side of him was soothed and put back to sleep.

Splendid, taking one long glance at those sparking inspiration in his celestial eyes, and the slight parting of his gorgeous mouth, found himself going giddy all over again. It was like those cheesy Happywood movies that he was sometimes portrayed in, but a million times better.

Splendid bit his lip. The true price of being deeply infatuated with the nameless sergeant finally dawned on him for the first time. _This is wrong_, a voice of reason screeched at the back of his head. _This is bad. You have a chance now. Turn back! Forget about him! Throw him to the dogs! _

Of course, Splendid was not known for his intelligence, for he forced the voice down and focused on speeding up a little towards somewhere. He did not really have a destination in mind, he just needed to drop the bear off somewhere where it was safe from the cops. After all, the singed parts of the soldier's uniform coupled with the slight trickle of Disco's blood on both their bodies wasn't really telling a good story to the public. As he was musing, the arm around his neck loosened slightly, but was still there nonetheless, clutching. The two cruised in tranquil silence throughout the flight.

By the time they had arrived there, the skies were already covered with a blanket of red. The streets of the area was rather deserted, as everyone was most likely locked up in the safety of their homes from the monsters of the approaching night. He realized with a sense of irony that one of the 'monsters' they were hiding from was the guy in his arms at the moment. And they call _him_ the guardian of this town. He would have laughed, but it was inappropriate, so he shut up. At least he wasn't a walking ball of irony like the soldier was, right?

This was the perfect setting for a suspected convict to run off to wherever the hell he needs to go, just as the hero intended, as was his splendidness. He settled the other down gently onto the floor at the back of an alleyway.

"Thank you," The other male muttered, his face still pink from the breathlessness he had experienced due to him being whisked into mid-air so suddenly.

"No problem at all," Splendid replied proudly, though he was taken aback from his rather polite behavior. Again, something's changed about the bear. He had became sweet and friendly all of a sudden, opposite from the snappy and grumpy attitude he displayed earlier. Was he bipolar, having mood swings, or both?

The other surveyed him, eyes zipping up and down at his form, causing Splendid to feel self-conscious all of a sudden. He shifted uncomfortably underneath the bear's dagger-like scrutinization.

When he was finished observing, his eyes landed on Splendid's very own. They didn't appear as suspicious as just now anymore, but nonetheless, his tone was slightly accusatory. "Why did you do that?" He inquired.

Huh? "Do what?" He asked obliviously, cocking his head to a side.

"Y-You know..." His jabbing gaze faltered as a _blush_ erupted across the sergeant's face. The sergeant immediately looked away, but Splendid caught it. He gaped. Yup, this guy was definitely bipolar. He knew what he was talking about, but to be honest, had no idea how to answer him. He didn't even know why he kissed him himself.

"I don't know." He admitted truthfully. The other still didn't look up. "I guess I was too impulsive, huh?"

"I don't even know you, and vice versa!" He cried, throwing his head up.

"But we can get to know each other, yes?" He cocked his eyebrows suggestively, only to groan internally later. He knew he was pushing the line between charming and creepy here but he was unable to keep his goof from showing.

The shorter male paused once more, but quickly regathered his wits, laughing nervously. "Look, I don't know what the hell I was doing when we first met, but that didn't count, whatever the hell I did!"

"What do you mean it didn't count? What about the Eter-"

"Forget it!" He pleaded, desperation clear in his eyes. "You shouldn't even be talking to me. I'm a murderer, a danger to society. Just take me to the police already, I can't stand this!"

Splendid shot him a weird look. "What the hell? Just minutes ago, you were blasting people up into smithereens without a single thought, and now you're telling me you feel guilty?" He accused.

A look of apprehension circled in the other's eyes. A shadow casted over his face as dark eyes refused to meet the squirrel's. "I'm a disgrace..." He mumbled.

Splendid's hard eyes softened. Whilst he didn't quite understand the situation, he was unable to help but pity the bear's ashamed expression. In a way, he agreed with him. He should be in prison right now for what he did, but Splendid just couldn't bring himself to bring him in. This was so wrong, being able to do normal things with this criminal he had only met just now, when he should be socking his face in and dragging him to jail. But how can he do that to someone who makes his heart race with just a glance, and cause his knees to quake with just a whiff of his scent?

Deciding to give the bear some space to himself, he turned away.

"I won't hand you over to the police." He affirmed with an air of finality. The civilian watched him in surprise. Splendid shot back a reassuring grin from behind his shoulders. He had a clear goal set determinedly in his mind, a goal that will be sure to cheer the bear up. They will meet again, that was for sure. The hero won't let him down that easily! He will find that jewel, and then... And then...

His head started doing backflips at the thought.

"Return home for now. Please, please don't do anything stupid, like vandalizing, or mass killing, or throwing your grenades everywhere you please... In fact, just don't do anything that will get you into trouble. But if you do have to, I will come flying back as fast as I can. And I will pick up the scraps you leave behind," The handsome soldier's eyes widened with the declaration. The masked vigilante beamed with a sincere twinkle in his gaze. "We've got an Eternal Jewel to locate after all. Can't have you rotting behind a prison cell, can I?"

The bear appeared too stunned by this... Confession of sorts, if that was what it was, to even form a proper reply. Splendid had no idea what was in the other's head at the moment, but he summoned up his courage to throw out the words he had to say before he even had a chance to take them back.

"I won't be backing down from your challenge that easily, you'll see the jewel in my hands in no time! You can trust me. I will do anything for you. _Anything_. So don't worry!"

And just like that, he took off into the night, leaving behind a distraught, but mostly curious soldier. He stared wordlessly after the retreating hero for a few moments, before shaking his head. Shakily, he calmed his nerves, and began making his way back home.

Had he taken a brief peek behind at the brick walls of the alley just now, he would have spotted a shadow of his own looking strangely out of shape. The insentient entity moved with a mind of its own, unheeding of its master's movements unlike the rest of the shadows casted in the dark alleyway. Before Flippy could even notice, it became slave to him once more like any obedient shadow would. It did not move an inch out of place for the rest of the day.

_'I will do anything for you. Anything.'_

Splendid screamed out loud, pulling his fur mid-air. He wanted to curl up into a ball and die, and would probably have done so if he wasn't kilometers away from the ground right now. What was he thinking? That totally sounded like a cheap line from a cheesy low-tier romance movie. It's over. That soldier probably thinks he's a loser now.

He sighed. Despite the awkwardness of the sentence, he really did mean his words though. He wondered if the soldier believed him.

The hero made his way over to the beach to wash off the crusted blood from the poor sap. As he was scrubbing off the brown layers, he began to muse. Years of experience with civilian deaths have desensitized the savior of this town enough that he would not spare a single thought for bloodshed. This was a really clumsy town, their inhabitants being very prone to accidents. Though of course, it was his job at the end of the day to minimize these deaths.

He held no sorrow for the fall of his friend and acquaintance Toothy and Disco. No matter what, they will always come back good as new again, as such was the mysterious works of magic in the queer town of Happy Tree. From the brutal way in which they'd been murdered, Splendid determined that it'd probably take some weeks for them to come back. Over the past few years, ever since he had moved to this town, Splendid noticed that the more messed up a body is after death, the longer time it will take for it to regenerate. In some way it reminded him of his needleworks. The more a doll gets torn and ragged, the more time he needed to stitch the pieces back together again. Splendid was one of the rare few that have experienced death only once or twice. To this day, the experience with the kryptonut exposure still sent shivers going up and down his spine. He did not want to go through that again.

Only the twins Lifty and Shifty knew about this of course, though Splendid had made sure to keep their mouths shut. The threat of setting the stolen goods and items in their residence on fire with his laser beams was enough to do it, it seems, but what about the soldier? What if he finds out? If he were to locate and obtain the Eternal Jewel before he does, he will have no choice but to tell him his weakness to the glowing nut. He would be dead meat, forced to leave the town to avoid the threat of death.

He shook his head. There was no way he'd give him that easy of a challenge. Splendid would just have to get to the Eternal Jewel before he does. After all, he has a bigger advantage over the bear. With great research, there was no way he'd beat him, for where there's a will, there will always be a way.

Wiping the last trace of blood from his matted fur, he shook off excess water from his body and sped towards a place he had in mind: The library.

He ended up spending the rest of the night there.

Splendid let loose a yawn, smacking his lips as his eyes struggled to stay open. A large hoard of books was spread out before him, scattered here and there like trash in a dumpsite. Most of them were history books on the ancient artifacts found in temples all over the world. So far, the closest information he had found on this unknown 'Eternal Jewel' was in the book 'The Buddhist Curse'. The red, dusty and decomposing book only contained a brief mention of the item, something about how it was "A legendary artifact that must never be in the wrong hands" or something like that. Splendid could only groan in frustration. That was not helpful at all, he just needed to know the whereabouts of this jewel. Still, he bookmarked the page. He does so happen to know a wise Buddhist monk that may know more about the ancient artifacts located in temples. Splendid, making up his mind, would make the phone call to the monkey later when he returns home. Maybe he'd be able to help.

He blinked the sleep away from his eyes. He was just about to move on to the next book until Mole, the new librarian, shooed him out. Apparently it was closing time in the wee hours of 3AM. He sighed and floated off, but not before bringing that old book along with him. It could come in handy in the future, the optimist thought. There was still hope, the trip to the library wasn't all in vain.

As Splendid made his way back, an odd feeling rang at the back of his head like a buzzard. He felt like he's forgotten something... And that he was about to find out what that something was soon enough. He licked his dried lips nervously and subconsciously flew faster.

He was picking up pace, accelerating at a godly speed as the need to check on his house grew to the size of an elephant. His mind echoed flashbacks of the occurrences of yesterday, and he dug and dug, searching for the designated memory. However, he was unable to locate it in time as when the searching came to a complete stop, so did the superhero. He paused so sharply the gathered speed from earlier sent him sprawling through the air. He quickly balanced himself up and looked at the empty space before him, where his Acorn Fortress was supposed to be.

The ground where the residence once stood tall and proud was but littered pathetically with a steep heap of black ash. He was able to catch the pungent smell of smoke rising out from the ashes with his super scent, and as it entered his lungs, it caused a queasy feeling filling the whole of the vigilante's abdomen. The entire atmosphere was palpable, as when Splendid's mind eventually did to process the scene before him, his eyes flared dangerously. The howl of anguish that followed after echoed throughout the town.

And on that day, Splendid learnt a valuable lesson: Never leave your vacuum cleaner running when leaving off to work.

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter! I'll try to make the next one more interesting, since I've already got the plot running in my head. So stay tuned! :D**


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